Baseball History, Commentary and Analysis

Baseball’s Top 40 Players, Age 25 Or Under

You can’t help but notice all the young talent on baseball rosters these days. There has certainly been a changing of the guard, especially among pitchers, over the past few seasons. Just try to name a dozen active pitchers age 32 or over that are still experiencing success in the Majors. I think you’ll find it challenging.

I decided, for my own benefit, to draw up a list of the best players currently on MLB rosters who are no older than 25. I want to make it clear that this is not a list of baseball’s top prospects. Mets fans won’t, for example, find either Zach Wheeler or Travis D’Arnoud on this list, nor will Cardinals fans spot Oscar Taveras’s name. This is a list of players who are actually active and contributing (to varying degrees) on MLB rosters. I think you’ll be familiar with many of these names, though most are far from being household names at this early point in their respective careers.

I listed the players by position, and also included their current age, and the team they play for. None of these players will turn 26-years old until at least this August at the earliest. Several of them are much younger than 25, as you will see. As you scan the list of 40 names, see how many of these players you recognize.

1B Freddie Freeman – Braves, age 23

1B Eric Hosmer – Royals, age 23

1B Anthony Rizzo – Cubs, age 23

1B Matt Adams – Cardinals, age 24

1B Paul Goldschmidt – Diamondbacks, age 25

2B Jose Altuve – Astros, age 23

3B Manny Machado – Orioles, age 20

3B Brett Lawrie – Blue Jays, age 23

3B Will Middlebrooks – Red Sox, age 24

3B Kyle Seager – Mariners, age 24

SS Starlin Castro – Cubs, age 23

SS Andrelton Simmons – Braves, age 23

SS Elvis Andrus – Rangers, age 24

C Salvador Perez – Royals, age 23

C Wil Rosario – Rockies, age 24

OF Bryce Harper – Nationals, age 20

OF Mike Trout – Angels, age 21

OF Jason Heyward – Braves, age 23

OF Giancarlo Stanton – Marlins, age 23

OF Starling Marte – Pirates, age 24

OF Travis Snider – Pirates, age 25

OF Justin Upton – Braves, age 25

SP Jose Fernandez – Marlins, age 20

SP Shelby Miller – Cardinals, age 22

SP Madison Bumgarner – Giants, age 23

SP Chris Sale – White Sox, age 24

SP Matt Moore – Rays, age 24

SP Matt Harvey – Mets, age 24

SP Jose Quintana – White Sox, age 24

SP Neftali Feliz – Rangers, age 24

SP Steven Strasburg – Nationals, age 24

SP Jhoulys Chacin – Rockies, age 25

SP Clayton Kershaw – Dodgers, age 25

SP Matt Latos – Reds, age 25

SP Mike Minor – Braves, age 25

RP Addison Reed – White Sox, age 24

RP Kenley Jansen – Dodgers, age 25

RP Craig Kimbrel – Braves, age 25

RP Bryan Shaw – Indians, age 25

RP Drew Storen – Nationals, age 25

What an amazing list of names. The quality of pitchers and outfielders is especially impressive. How many of these players will go on to enjoy Hall of Fame careers? Certainly, several of these players will appear in more than a couple of All-Star games. Some will see their careers shortened, or derailed altogether, by injuries. Others will simply flame out after a few good seasons. But they, along with the other prospects that baseball keeps churning out, are baseball’s future. And seldom in baseball’s long history has that future looked brighter.

Hey Smak, As far as relievers are concerned, few of them ever have long and significantly successful careers, so the odds are with you regarding your analysis of Jansen. Somehow, I never noticed the possibility of Stalin Castro! Guess I’m not the budding socialist some people think I am.
Thanks for checking in, man.
Bill

Nice list. However, I would not have put Feliz on there as a starting pitcher. While he excelled as a closer (and I still think he would be great as a middle reliever), he is not a good starter. His record shows that he has about four really great innings. After that, he is pretty much done. I fear the Rangers ruined him by trying to make a starter out of him. He has yet to come back from his injuries.

Jeff, I think you’re right about that. I only listed him as a starter because that’s what he was doing at the time of his injury. But I do agree with you that if he’s going to be great, it’ll probably have to be as a relief pitcher.
Nice catch,
Bill

It’s a great time to be a baseball fan, but I get the impression sometimes that lots of people are so jaded by the steroid issue that they just don’t want to get too hooked on this new crop of young players. Also, it seems to me that at least some older baseball fans would rather reminisce about the old days than pay much attention to what’s going on in the game today. Their loss.